CN105917403B

CN105917403B - Method and apparatus for using low inductance coil in electronic pickup

Info

Publication number: CN105917403B
Application number: CN201580003936.2A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 劳伦斯·菲什曼; 约翰·埃克
Original assignee: Fishman Transducers Inc
Current assignee: Fishman Transducers Inc
Priority date: 2014-01-10
Filing date: 2015-01-12
Publication date: 2020-03-03
Anticipated expiration: 2035-01-12
Also published as: EP3092635A1; WO2015106203A1; CN105917403A; US9355630B2; EP3092635A4; US20160284331A1; US9679550B2; US20150199949A1; EP3092635B1

Abstract

A pickup apparatus for an electronic musical instrument may include at least one permanent magnet to detect vibrations from strings of the electronic musical instrument. The pickup may also include at least one coil within the magnetic field of the permanent magnet. The coil may be coupled to one or more of a plurality of selectable filters. The pickup device may be an integrated component and may fit within a standard sized pickup cavity on the electronic musical instrument.

Description

Method and apparatus for using low inductance coil in electronic pickup

Technical Field

The present invention relates to an electronic musical instrument pickup for a stringed musical instrument.

Background

An electric guitar player may be able to select different devices to produce a variety of tone symbols, such as "warm" jazz guitar tones, "happy" pop guitar tones, "overloaded" rock guitar tones, and severely distorted metal guitar tones. The desired key may vary depending on the genre of the music, the preferences of the individual musicians, or the songs being played. The musician can control the tone marks through skill and style of performance and through selection of the equipment and its settings. Players of instruments other than guitars (including bass guitars, hawaiian chords, mandolin, violins, viola, cello, viola, and banjo) may also produce the desired tonal characteristics. The selected device may be, for example, a guitar, a microphone, or an effect pedal.

The tone mark may be influenced by the selection of the electro-optical pick-up. On an electric guitar or other electrically powered musical instrument, a conventional pickup may be an electromagnetic device that converts string vibrations into electrical signals in reaction to the motion of the metal guitar strings. This electrical signal represents the musical notes played by the musician, as well as the tone notes derived from the captured string vibrations and the inherent characteristics of the individual microphones. Such electrical signals from the microphone may be further modified downstream by external means, such as an effect pedal and an amplifier, and then converted into audible sound by a loudspeaker.

A conventional electric guitar pickup may be a passive electromagnetic circuit that includes a magnet and a conductive coil, but no battery or power supply circuit. The coil may be made by winding a copper wire onto a plastic bobbin using a winding machine. Other electric guitar pickups may be active and may include, for example, a battery that powers the preamplifier circuit. Active components may be added to a conventional passive pickup. Differences between sound pickup products can be achieved by intentionally changing the construction and materials used to make the sound pickup.

Conventional electric and bass guitar pickups can be mounted in a semi-permanent manner. Some microphones have coil tap switches that allow the musician to remove one set of coils from the signal chain and, in some cases, to be able to insert another set of coils to produce a different sound. While conventional tone controllers and coil taps can change the sound of a particular microphone, they cannot change the basic definition of "voice" for a particular brand or model. During the performance, the musician cannot select different models or brands of microphone voices from song to song; he or she must drop the instrument and select a different instrument with a different pickup and may need to disconnect and reconnect the cable unless each instrument is connected to a dedicated amplifier. Replacing the pickup is a time consuming task requiring some effort and skill through hand tools and welding. Furthermore, the sound produced by a particular model of individual sound pickup or multiple sound pickups may differ from that model of other sound pickup because it may differ in its physical characteristics. Due to these physical limitations, the characteristics of a conventional guitar sound may not be changeable on one instrument.

Disclosure of Invention

A pickup apparatus for an electronic musical instrument may include at least one permanent magnet to detect vibrations from strings of the electronic musical instrument. The pickup may also include at least one coil within the magnetic field of the permanent magnet. The coil may be coupled to one or more of a plurality of selectable filters. The pickup may be an integrated component and may fit within a standard sized pickup cavity on an electronic musical instrument.

Drawings

The subject matter regarded as the invention is particularly pointed out and distinctly claimed in the concluding portion of the specification. The invention, however, both as to organization and method of operation, together with objects, features, and advantages thereof, may best be understood by reference to the following detailed description when read with the accompanying drawings in which:

fig. 1A and 1B are graphs of the frequency response of an example microphone in accordance with embodiments of the invention.

Fig. 1C is a circuit diagram of a sound pickup including a plurality of selectable filters according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a diagram of a sound pickup system for an electric guitar according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 3A is an illustration of a sound pickup according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 3B is an exploded view of a pickup for an electric guitar according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 4 depicts a buzz canceling configuration of a microphone providing multiple sounds, according to an embodiment.

Fig. 5 is an illustration of a standard sound-picking chamber on an electric guitar 501 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

It will be appreciated that for simplicity and clarity of illustration, elements shown in the figures have not necessarily been drawn to scale. For example, the dimensions of some of the elements may be exaggerated relative to other elements for clarity. Further, where considered appropriate, reference numerals may be repeated among the figures to indicate corresponding or analogous elements.

Detailed Description

In the following description, various aspects of the present invention will be described. For purposes of explanation, specific configurations and details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the present invention. However, it will also be apparent to one skilled in the art that the present invention may be practiced without the specific details presented herein. In addition, well-known features may be omitted or simplified in order not to obscure the present invention.

Unless specifically stated otherwise as apparent from the following discussions, it is appreciated that throughout the specification discussions utilizing terms such as "processing," "estimating," "computing," "determining," or the like, refer to the action and/or processes of a computer or computing system, or similar electronic computing device, that manipulate and/or transform data represented as physical, such as electronic, quantities within the computing system's registers and/or memories into other data similarly represented as physical quantities within the computing system's memories, registers or other such information storage, transmission or display devices.

Embodiments of the present invention may provide systems or methods for producing sound or audio from the action of a musical instrument player on a stringed musical instrument of an electronic musical instrument, including, for example, an electric guitar or an electric violin. Pickups may be used to pick up or detect vibrations of nearby magnetic or soft magnetic strings (e.g., metal strings). Vibrations can be detected as a result of changes in the magnetic field around the magnetic bars of the pickup, which are placed individually in close proximity to the strings of the instrument.

Conventional passive electromagnetic pickups may be physical devices that include a coil of wire within the magnetic field of a steel or other metal string placed in close proximity to the musical instrument. The magnetic field may come from a magnetic material placed within the radius of the coil. The magnetic material may be a permanent magnet placed in a row, for example, to produce a fixed magnetic field when the instrument is not being played. Because the magnet is made of a material that produces its own permanent magnetic field, the magnet may be permanent. The permanent magnet may take any form, such as a magnetic strip or bar, for example. The motion of a vibrating ferromagnetic or metallic string can change the fixed state of the magnetic field through which the string passes by changing the reluctance in the field. The change in reluctance of the magnetic field induces a current in the coil. The current induced in the coil can provide a signal characteristic proportional to the motion of the string. The output of the coil may be connected to the input of the audio amplifier via a shielded cable and the generated sound may be a replay of the vibrational characteristics of the string.

Embodiments of the present invention may provide a system that includes a microphone with a constant or predictable frequency response coupled with an optional digital or analog filter that may replicate, simulate, mimic, or reproduce the frequency response characteristics of a conventional microphone or may produce a new frequency response characteristic that provides a unique set of tones or timbres. The inductance of the coil of the pickup may vary with the number of turns of its wire, e.g., a larger number of turns of the coil may be associated with a larger inductance value of the coil. Since a conventional or traditional microphone coil may include a higher number of turns, the conventional coil may have a higher inductance than those used in embodiments of the present invention (although embodiments of the present invention may also use such higher turn coils). According to an embodiment of the invention, the pickup may comprise a coil, which is in the vicinity of the magnetic field provided by the permanent magnet. The coil may be a wire-wound or printed coil (e.g., a coil fabricated on a compact printed circuit board). The coil may be a low inductance coil, for example, having less than 3000 turns (e.g., 1600 or 1000 turns). More than 3000 turns may be used. The low inductance for the coil may be, for example, less than 500 millihenries. The coil may have a flat frequency response within the audible range of human hearing (e.g., 20Hz to 20kHz), allowing digital or analog shaping to reproduce sound from other microphones or to produce entirely new sound. A flat frequency response may mean that it has a constant or nearly constant power output over the frequency range of audible hearing. Digital and analog shaping of the frequency response may be produced by active circuitry or programming. In other embodiments, a coil with a higher inductance may be used for a higher power frequency response (e.g., greater than 500 millihenries). Several factors may affect the acoustic characteristics of the microphone:

magnetic structure (part of a physical pickup) -the pickups may have a magnetic structure similar to the pickup they mimic. A pickup for a stirling guitar may use six bar magnets passing through coils; classic dual coil pickups (humbuckers) may use a bar magnet under the coil with a screw (pole screens) passing through the coil; modern dual coil pickups may use bar magnets under the coil with a blade bar (pole blade) passing through the coil.

Low inductance coil (part of physical pickup). These may be PCB (printed circuit board) coils or wire-wound coils.

Gain (part of the active circuit). Low inductance coils are low output relative to conventional pickups. The gain increases the output to the level of other conventional pickups.

Filtering (part of the active circuit). Filtering may allow the response of the pickup to be adjusted to mimic the sound of the target pickup, or to produce a unique sound.

Different tonal characteristics may result from variations such as different types and configurations of magnets, different numbers of wires in the coil, a single coil to hum canceling configuration, and different physical configurations of components. A typical electromagnetic pickup may be manufactured from thousands of turns of small gauge coated wire. The variable capacitance values may be due to differences in coating thickness (which may depend on the humidity conditions during the coating application and the manufacturing accuracy, and these variations may occur even within the same standard model). During the manufacturing process, variations in tension and winding speed can stretch the wire. This stretching will cause a change in the resistance and capacitance of the coils, which will cause each coil to have a different resonance frequency and thus different sound characteristics for each individual pickup. For example, a typical microphone coil may be manufactured with 3000-. While a larger number of turns may provide a higher power or energy output, they may significantly attenuate the signal output at higher frequencies. Embodiments of the present invention may solve or alleviate the problems of many microphones currently produced. For example, some multi-voice microphones may require a complex and cumbersome set of knobs and switches to adjust gain and change frequency characteristics. However, such manual tuning of the filter may be impractical for producing repeatable and predictable sounds or tones during live performances. Other pickups may require additional electronic components to power the pickups, which may be inconvenient or require changes to the body of the guitar. According to embodiments of the present invention, the pickup described herein may be completely contained or integrated within the pickup cavity of the guitar. By using a low inductance coil (which may be printed on a circuit board, for example), the hum canceling configuration may be more effective in canceling hum than a conventional wire-wound coil in a dual coil pickup configuration. Furthermore, the predictability of the orderly stacked coil layers ensures that electrical repeatability is not available in conventional designs. Conventional passive designs may add more turns to the coil for more output, but this may shift the resonance peak down in frequency and undermine the cheering and pass-through characteristics (which are typical of "under-wound designs"). Embodiments of the present invention are capable of transmitting classical sound at higher output levels.

The pickup may operate as a typical resonant circuit, with the coil of the pickup providing inductance, capacitance and resistance. When the strings of the electric guitar vibrate or move due to the musician's performance, the strings change or affect the magnetic field provided by the magnetic wand and induce a time-varying voltage (and hence an alternating current) in the coils of the pickup. The frequency of the varying voltage or alternating current may correspond to the frequency of the notes played on the electric guitar strings. Because the pickups can operate as a resonant circuit, each guitar pickup can exhibit a unique frequency response characteristic (which describes the varying power output of the sound produced by the guitar), depending on the frequency of the sound being played. Each pickup may have, for example, one or more distinct peaks or resonant frequencies at which the output sound of a guitar using the pickup is at a maximum. Other unique characteristics of the frequency response of the microphone may be, for example, the cut-off frequency, the slope of the attenuation, or other transfer function characteristics. The frequency response of the pickup may describe the characteristic sounds or tones of an electric guitar, such as the "warm" jazz guitar tones, the "happy" pop guitar tones.

Many conventional pickups may be preferred by musicians for their sound, but may also be sensitive to parasitic capacitances and resistances (which may be inherent in the coil or inadvertently added to the resonant circuit of the pickup), thus affecting its frequency response and sound. Single coil pickups may have the sound desired by a musician, for example, but they may also send a 60Hz/50Hz hum due to AC powered devices and other noise sources in the environment. A single coil pickup may be sensitive to magnetic fields generated by, for example, transformers, fluorescent lamps, and other sources of interference, and may pick up hum and noise from these sources. Buzzing can be mitigated, for example, by vertically stacking two high inductance coils, but the high frequency content can be attenuated in the audible range of music and the microphone may lose the desired sound. A dual coil or dual coil pickup may use two specially configured coils to minimize such interference or hum.

Fig. 1A and 1B are graphs illustrating frequency responses of a sound pickup, according to an embodiment of the present invention. For the Finder Stratocarter pickup manufactured in 1972, for example, the frequency response curve 150 of its pickup may be varied according to, for example, the resistive load applied to the pickup (such as the load from a connected amplifier), volume control, or tone control. As shown in fig. 1A, a stirling microphone may typically have a peak frequency of about 4.7 kHz. When 10 mohms is applied to a microphone, the microphone may have a higher power output at its peak frequency than when a smaller resistance is applied, such as 2200 kohms or 10 kohms. The stirling microphone may also have different peak frequencies due to the capacitive loading of the shielded cable connecting the microphone to the amplifier. These load values are determined by, for example, the design and length of the connecting cable. If the stirling pickup with constant resistance included an additional 2200pF, as shown in fig. 1B, the peak frequency would likely be at 2.4kHz, while a stirling pickup with 47pF would have a peak frequency at about 8 kHz. Both resistance and capacitance can change the tone characteristics and frequency response that is sharply produced or provided by the pickup of the guitar. Because different capacitive and resistive loads provided by the peripheral devices may affect each microphone differently, it may be difficult for a musician intending to maintain one type of tone or sound to change the microphone or use a different kind of peripheral device (e.g., an amplifier or an effect pedal).

Fig. 1C is a circuit diagram of a sound pickup including a plurality of selectable filters according to an embodiment of the present invention. Other or different components and arrangements may be used. As mentioned above, the pickup may operate as a resonant circuit. The microphone coil may operate as an inductor 170 and the output signal from the coil may be fed into a primary gain preamplifier 172 in order to maintain a desired output level. The active filter 174 may receive the signal from the coil and apply any combination of high pass, low pass, or band pass filters in order to shape the desired frequency response 180 of the pickup. A switch 176, toggle, button, push knob, or other device may be used to toggle or select between the two sounds provided by the filter 174. (more than two filters are possible). The output 178 from the microphone may be connected to an amplifying device, which may affect capacitive and resistive loads on the circuit.

Simulating the sound or frequency response of a conventional passive pickup may involve analyzing and reproducing the magnetic field properties of the conventional pickup and measuring the frequency response and output level. The measured parameters may then be loaded into a signal processor development system that allows real-time audio audition and fine-tuning of the response through feedback from professional musicians. The development system may determine optimal filter coefficients for the transfer function of the microphone. These coefficients can be imported into the simulation program and an accurate replica response can be implemented by the simulation component.

Fig. 2 is a diagram of a sound pickup system for an electric guitar according to an embodiment of the present invention. An electronic musical instrument 100, such as an electric guitar, for example, may include a string 102 on which a musician can play, and a pickup 104 to detect or pick up vibrations from the string 102. The vibration of the strings may cause a change in the magnetic field of the pickup and induce a time-varying voltage in the low inductance coil 106. The voltage may include information about the musical note played on the string or the rate of vibration on the string. While each string may vibrate near its own bar magnet, the magnetic field variations may together induce a time-varying voltage that may be output and interpreted by the speaker as audio. Pickup 104 may include magnetic rods surrounded by a low inductance coil 106 coupled to an amplifier circuit 108 that increases the voltage gain of the output of coil 106 or having low inductance coil 106 around the magnetic rods. The output of the gain amplifier circuit 108 may be coupled or connected to one or more filters 110 that may be selected or controlled by a switch 112.

In one embodiment, pickup 104 may include N analog filters (filter 1 through filter N) connected to the physical pickup coil, possibly via other circuitry, such as gain amplifier circuitry 108. A switch 112 or other device may route a signal from the coil (which is representative of the string vibrations) through one of the filters 110 to produce a modified or modeled signal. Any combination of analog filters known in the art may be used, such as a low pass filter, a high pass filter, a band stop filter, or a resonant filter. For analog modeling, analog filters may mimic or improve the sound of popular microphones sold by different companies or manufacturers. The analog filter may comprise a second order low pass filter having a formant to simulate the natural behavior of a passive pickup. Other configurations may also be used. Some filters used with embodiments of the present invention may pass a sound spectrum (sound recipes) that otherwise would not be possible to implement using conventional passive filtering techniques. Some filters may also pass sound that is not produced by existing pickups.

In one embodiment, a microphone may include two or more independent active tone shaping filters, which are themselves included within a standard microphone form factor. Each filter may be designed to provide a different speech output given the same electromagnetic-coil input. The leads on the filter board allow the normally on/off circuit to determine which filter is connected to the output. If these leads are connected to a switch, the guitar player can switch back and forth between the two sounds while playing. Other methods of selecting filters or sounds may be used.

In one embodiment, the pickup 104 shown in FIG. 2 may include N digital or analog filters 110 (filter 1 through filter N) that may be connected to the physical pickup coils via other circuitry, such as gain circuitry. The switch 112 or other device may route the signal from the coil (which is representative of the string vibrations) through one of the filters to produce a modified or modeled signal. For digital filters, a digital switch on the DSP or microprocessor may apply different filters depending on the indicated settings.

For an analog filter, the filter 110 may be a pre-fabricated circuit in a combination of, for example, a low-pass filter, a high-pass filter, and a resonant circuit. The switch 112 may be mechanical and allow current to flow through one filter 110 at a time. Other switches than mechanical switches may be used. For a digital filter, the filter 104 may be implemented, for example, by software installed on a processor, such as a microprocessor or FPGA (field programmable gate array), such that the processor is configured to act as one or more filters. A digital filter, expressed as software or code that may cause a processor to filter in some manner, may be downloaded or installed from computer 114. The digital filter may be initially edited in software via a user interface that allows the user to edit the desired frequency response characteristics of the filter, such as editing the filter coefficients and the resonant frequency. The user may also download the filter to the computer 114, which may be saved on the server 116 or network and installed onto one or more filters coupled to the coil 106. The computer 114 may include a memory 114a and one or more processors 114b to run editing software. The digital filter may be edited via an input device, such as mouse 118 or keyboard 120. After the signal from the coil passes through the filter, the filtered signal may be output 122 to other filters, such as in an effect pedal, or through an amplifier or speaker, for example.

Fig. 3A is an illustration of a sound pickup 200 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The pickup may include one or more magnetic bars 202 (or other forms of permanent magnets) having a magnetic field responsive to or influenced by the vibration of a metal string 204 that may be plucked or played by a musician. The bar magnet 202 may also be a magnetic strip or other shape. For magnetic rods 202, for example, a string 104 may have one rod 202. The magnetic bar 202 may be surrounded by a wire or printed coil 206 or have such a wire or coil around the magnetic bar, such as a coil printed on a silicon PCB (printed circuit board). In some embodiments, the coil may be placed within the magnetic field of the bar magnet 202, without necessarily surrounding the magnet. The change in the magnetic field of the bar magnet 202 may induce a time-varying voltage in the coil 206, for example, to produce an analog signal representative of a note played by a musician. The analog signal may be input into the processor or controller 208 by an optional digital or analog filter (e.g., as explained in fig. 1C and 2). The filtered signal may be output or amplified to a speaker 212. The pickup 200, together with the coil 206, the magnetic bar 202 and the control 208 with the filter, can be fitted to the standard location of the pickup on an electric guitar so that the pickup 200 can easily replace the original pickup of the guitar without changing the body of the guitar. Through the controller and filter, the microphone may mimic or simulate other older models of microphones or produce different sounds altogether. Pickup 200 may also be retrofitted or placed onto an old standard electric guitar model. The older electric guitar model may be manufactured with a different pickup initially, but pickup 200 may have dimensions that allow it to fit into the older standard guitar model. Standard electric guitar models may include, for example, Gibson Les Paul, Gibson ES-325, Gibson Futura, Fender Telecaster, Fender Stratocaster, or other electric guitar models.

The spacing between the combination of coils may also affect the sound of the microphone. Without canceling the signal, the greater spacing between the top and bottom coils may cancel the hum. This is made possible by stacking thin low inductance coils 206 and then providing spacers 207 in between. Conventional high inductance coils can be much taller, so the stacked coil pickup allows little or no space between the coils. In a conventional pickup, the bottom coil (hum canceling coil) may start closer to the string and pick up more signal. As a result, not only does a conventional stacked coil pickup cancel the buzz, it may also cancel a significant amount of the signal. Embodiments of the present invention may cancel the hum, but the fact that the bottom coil is farther away from the chord means that there may be less signal cancellation.

The pickup 200, including the coil 206, the bar magnet 202, the optional filter 210, the spacer 207, the processor 208, and the housing (see, e.g., housing 303 in fig. 3B) may be integrated or combined into a single component or item or portion such that the pickup may fit within a standard sized pickup cavity. For example, for a single coil or single width standard sound-picking chamber, the pickup may be no more than about 18.3mm wide, 83.8mm long and 12.6mm high. In another example, for a soap bar shaped dual coil sound pick-up chamber on a Gibson Les Paul guitar, a standard sized pickup may be no more than about 70.1mm by 38.3mm by 17mm high. Other standard sizes of the sound-collecting chamber are possible. The pickup assembly may also be modified to, for example, a standard electric guitar or a model of an older electric guitar made in the fifties of the twentieth century.

One or more processors (e.g., processors 114a and 208) may be used to process, transmit, receive, edit, manipulate, synthesize, or patch digital or analog audio signals. The processor(s) may be coupled to one or more memory devices. A computer may include one or more controllers or processors, respectively, for performing operations, and one or more memory units, respectively, for storing data and/or instructions (e.g., software) that may be executed by the processors. The processor may include, for example, a Central Processing Unit (CPU), a Digital Signal Processor (DSP), a microprocessor, a controller, a chip, a microchip, an Integrated Circuit (IC), or any other suitable multi-purpose or specific processor or controller. The memory units may include, for example, Random Access Memory (RAM), dynamic RAM (dram), flash memory, volatile memory, non-volatile memory, cache memory, buffers, short-term memory units, long-term memory units, or other suitable memory units or storage units. The computer may include one or more input devices for receiving input from a user or agent (e.g., via a pointing device, click wheel or mouse, button, touch screen, recorder/microphone, other input component), and an output device for displaying data to the client and agent, respectively.

Various embodiments of the present invention may include a sensor system to convert string vibrations to electrical signals, analog-to-digital audio conversion, previously generated digital models of response characteristics of a plurality of pickups stored in memory, methods to edit and update the digital models, methods to communicate with external software and libraries of digital models, methods to select which digital model or models to apply, methods to generate digital output signals that overlay the sound characteristics of the digital models over the notes played by the musician, digital-to-analog audio conversion to generate analog electrical output signals, standard 1/4-inch telephone jacks to connect to external devices such as pedals and amplifiers, and one or more batteries (e.g., battery 214 in fig. 3A) to power the system components, wherein all elements are embedded in the body of the electric guitar. The battery 214 or other power source may be fully integrated in or within the control cavity of, for example, an electric guitar, to avoid any modification to the body of the instrument.

Embodiments of the invention may provide the following capabilities: selecting from a plurality of digital models of desired pickup tones to edit those models, storing those models in the guitar or other instrument, and selecting while playing the instrument, results in rapid changes to the tones of the electronic instrument provided to the external devices, such as amplifiers and effect pedals.

The pickup may convert the physical vibrations produced by the instrument strings into analog electrical signals. The electrical signals pass through wires to an analog-to-digital converter that converts the electrical signals to high resolution digital signals. The high resolution digital signal is routed to, for example, a programmable Digital Signal Processor (DSP), processor, computer processor, microprocessor, or controller.

The processor (e.g., processor 208) may include software programmed by: a plurality of individual previously generated digital models of a particular conventional microphone, or a plurality of edited versions of a particular conventional microphone or a plurality of design models of a theoretical microphone. The software may be stored in the memory 216. Each digital model describes a frequency response, an output level, a transient response, a frequency dependent attenuation curve, or other desired frequency characteristic. The software may also produce digital output signals representative of the notes played by the stringed instrument player, digitally processed to reflect the tone and response characteristics of the digital model. The filter or model may take input analog signals from the coil of the pickup, may alter these signals, and as output may produce a modified signal (which is based on the notes played on the guitar and sounds like a particular type of pickup or model has been used to produce the signal).

The digital output signal from the processor may be further routed to a digital-to-analog converter that generates an analog electrical signal (which is an accurate representation of the digital output signal). The analog electrical signals are further routed to a conventional 1/4 inch telephone jack connector that may be exposed. The signal output of the present invention can be connected to external devices, such as amplifiers and effect pedals, by plugging a cable with a conventional 1/4 inch telephone plug into the jack. The user can select from a menu (e.g., on a user interface) that simulates or mimics the digital model of a traditional microphone. The digital model may be implemented by selecting a pre-made filter or creating a new filter. For example, in one embodiment, a multi-position switch on the face of the guitar or other instrument allows for convenient and quick selection of the digital model by, for example, turning a rotary switch, repositioning a paddle switch, or depressing a button. Other selection methods and other selection means may be used.

During a performance, the musician can toggle to select one or more players of multiple digital models of different "old-fashioned" microphones and popular microphone products to change switch positions to switch between different microphone modes. Each switch position may be a model of, for example, a single coil, a dual coil, or an active microphone with some filters, or some digital model that is immediately recognizable and appreciated by the market. The selection switch may provide both visual and tactile feedback to the player. Visually, various embodiments of the present invention may display a list of available trigger modes, with an indicator showing which mode was selected. The haptic response may come from the detent at each stop, allowing the player to select without looking.

Digital modes may include those that simulate a desired pickup, including but not limited to: low output single coil in the twentieth fifties as an old (vision) Fender Stratocaster; high output single coils, such as the seymourdunican hot rail; a noise canceling monocoil; a single coil at the bridge location as in the old Fender telecom; a single coil at the neck position as in the old Fender Telecaster; old-fashioned P90; the old-fashioned PAF dual coil pickup of 1957; 57 classical (Classic) by Gibson; gibson's 57 classical plus; gibson mini dual coil pickup; seymour Duncan JB; dimazio Super disconnection; a high output neck dual coil pickup; such as Trembucker at the old Gretsch Country Gentleman; old Burns Tri-Sonic or modern replicas such as Adeson; an EMG 81 active microphone; an EMG 85 active pickup; an EMG 60 active microphone; an EMG 8IX active microphone; an EMG 85X active microphone; seymour Duncan Blackout; seymour Duncan Bill Mustaine; BillLawrence L-48; bill Lawrence L-90.

For example, a filter (e.g., filter 313) on a single width or single coil pickup may mimic or model legacy single coil sounds by providing a frequency response to the input signal that is unique to legacy single coil sounds. The frequency response of older single-coil sounds may have a peak frequency of 4 kHz. The same single width microphone is also capable of simulating or modeling the rhythmically strong Texas single coil sound at a peak frequency of 3 kHz. The two sounds emulated on a single width microphone may be selected, for example, by a switch. In another example, the filters on a dual coil microphone may emulate an old PAF microphone with a peak frequency of 2.6kHz using one filter and provide, for example, three peak frequencies for the new sound. Other combinations are also possible.

Fig. 3B is an exploded view of a pickup for an electric guitar according to an embodiment of the present invention. Other arrangements may also be used. The pickup may include a housing 303 to protect or shield the coil and filter from the external environment. The housing 303 may be plastic or made of other insulating materials. The housing 303 may include an aperture to support a magnetic bar 305 that provides a magnetic field to detect the vibrations of the guitar string. The housing 303 may also cover the coil 307 and optional spacers 308. The substrate 309 of the pickup may be a Printed Circuit Board (PCB) with an integrated controller or processor 311 that filters the filtered signal from the coil 305. The substrate 309 may further be integrated with a plurality of optional filters 313 that provide analog microphone sound. The microphone arrangement may be integrated or incorporated in or within a standard sound-picking chamber of an electric guitar (see, e.g., fig. 5).

Fig. 4 depicts a buzz canceling configuration of a microphone providing multiple sounds, according to an embodiment of the invention. Other coils and pickups and other configurations may be used. Instead of a single width coil, which may include stacked coils (see, e.g., fig. 3B), the buzz canceling or dual coil pickup 401 may include, for example, two sets of magnetic bars 403a and 403B and two wound coils 405a and 405B to surround or be disposed around each set of magnetic bars. The wire wound coils 405a and 405b may be wound, for example, with a small number of turns to provide low inductance and a predictable frequency response. The alnico magnetic strip 407 may further magnetize the magnetic bar, making the generated magnetic field stronger. Other types of magnets may be used, such as ceramic strip magnets. The dual coil microphone substrate 409 may be further integrated with a plurality of optional filters 411 that provide analog microphone sounds. The pickup configuration may be integrated or incorporated into or within a standard pickup cavity of an electric guitar (see, e.g., cavity 505 in fig. 5).

Fig. 5 is an illustration of a standard sound-picking chamber on an electric guitar 501 according to an embodiment of the present invention. Some types of standard pickup cavities may be present on different types of guitars. In some guitars, more than one type of pick-up chamber may be located on the electric guitar. One type of standard cavity may be a single coil or a single width sound-pick-up cavity 503. The pickups described herein may include, for example, a magnetic bar, a coil, and a plurality of selectable filters to produce sound that simulates or mimics classical or other pickup sound, and these elements may be fully integrated within a standard pickup cavity, such as a single width pickup cavity 503. The magnetic bars of the pickup may be further spaced according to a standard size, for example 52.2mm (millimeters). Another type of standard cavity may be a dual coil sound-collecting cavity 505. The multi-sound pick-up described herein may be integrated in the following manner: no further modifications to the electric guitar are required for mounting and use of the pickup.

Implementations of the invention may include an article of manufacture, such as a non-transitory storage medium readable by a computer or processor, such as, for example, a memory, a disk drive, or a USB flash device, encoding, including, or storing instructions (e.g., computer-executable instructions) that, when executed by a processor or controller, cause the processor or controller to implement the methods disclosed herein. Some embodiments may comprise a combination of one or more general-purpose processors and one or more special-purpose processors, such as a DSP (digital signal processor).

Thus, embodiments of the invention have been described with respect to what is presently considered to be the best mode, wherein it is understood that the embodiments can be modified and varied without departing from the teachings herein. It is therefore intended that the invention not be limited to the exact details set forth herein, but that it will cover the subject matter of the appended claims and the equivalents of such modifications and variations as fall within the true spirit of the invention.

Claims

1. A pickup device for an electronic musical instrument, comprising:

at least one permanent magnet for detecting vibrations from the strings of the electronic musical instrument; and

at least one low inductance printed coil within the magnetic field of the permanent magnet, wherein the printed coil is coupled to one or more of a plurality of optional active filters, wherein the permanent magnet, plurality of optional active filters, and the printed coil are an integrated component;

wherein the pickup apparatus is retrofittable into a standard electric guitar; and wherein the coil has less than 3000 turns.

2. The pickup device of claim 1, wherein the filter is an analog filter.

3. The pickup device of claim 1, wherein the filter is a digital filter.

4. The pickup device of claim 3, wherein the digital filter is implemented in a digital signal processor.

5. The pickup device of claim 3, wherein the digital filter receives power from a power source integrated within a control cavity of the electronic musical instrument.

6. The pickup device of claim 3, wherein the digital filter is downloaded from a computer onto a memory stored in the pickup device.

7. The pickup device of claim 1, wherein each of the selectable active filters produces a different pickup sound and a switch selects which filter is used.

8. A method of simulating sound, comprising:

detecting vibrations from strings of the electronic musical instrument by changes in a magnetic field provided by at least one permanent magnet, wherein at least one low inductance printed coil is within the magnetic field; and

inputting a signal from the printed coil through one or more of a plurality of selectable active filters, wherein the permanent magnet, the printed coil, and the plurality of selectable active filters are integrated components;

wherein the integrated component is capable of being retrofitted into a standard electric guitar; and wherein the coil has less than 3000 turns.

9. The method of claim 8, comprising outputting a signal from one of the plurality of selectable active filters to an amplifier.

10. The method of claim 8, comprising selecting between the plurality of selectable active filters using a switch.

11. The method of claim 8, wherein each of the selectable active filters provides a different frequency response to the signal from the printed coil.

12. A pickup system, comprising:

at least one permanent magnet providing a magnetic field responsive to vibrations from the strings of the electronic musical instrument; and

at least one low inductance printed coil responsive to the magnetic field, the printed coil coupled to one of a plurality of selectable active filters, wherein the permanent magnet, the printed coil, and the plurality of selectable active filters are integrated components;

wherein the pickup system is retrofittable into a standard electric guitar; and wherein the coil has less than 3000 turns.

13. The pickup system of claim 12, wherein the selectable active filters are a single high pass, low pass, or band pass filter, or a combination of high pass, low pass, or band pass filters.

14. The pickup system of claim 12, wherein the selectable active filters are digital.

15. A pickup device for an electronic musical instrument, comprising:

at least one coil within a magnetic field of the permanent magnet, wherein the coil is coupled to one or more of a plurality of selectable digital active filters, wherein the permanent magnet, the coil, and the plurality of selectable digital active filters are integrated components;

16. The pickup device of claim 15, wherein the digital active filter is implemented in a digital signal processor.

17. The pickup device of claim 15, wherein the coil is wire wound.

18. The pickup device of claim 15, wherein the integrated assembly is located within a single width pickup cavity.

19. A pickup device for an electronic musical instrument, comprising:

at least one low inductance coil within a magnetic field of the permanent magnet, wherein the low inductance coil is coupled to one or more of a plurality of selectable digital active filters, wherein the permanent magnet, the low inductance coil, and the plurality of selectable digital active filters are integrated components;

20. The pickup device of claim 19, wherein the coil is wire wound.

21. The pickup device of claim 19, wherein the coil is less than 1600 turns.

22. The pickup device of claim 19, wherein the coil is less than 500 millihenries.

23. An audio pickup apparatus for producing an audio signal representing a musical score from an electronic musical instrument, the audio pickup apparatus comprising:

at least one low inductance wire-wound coil of less than 3000 turns within the magnetic field of the permanent magnet, having wherein the low inductance wire-wound coil is coupled to one or more of a plurality of selectable active filters;

24. The pickup device of claim 23, wherein the coil is less than 1600 turns.

25. The pickup device of claim 23, wherein the coil is less than 500 millihenries.

26. An audio pickup apparatus for producing an audio signal representing a musical score from an electronic musical instrument, the audio pickup apparatus comprising:

at least one low inductance printed coil within the magnetic field of the permanent magnet, wherein the printed coil is coupled to a single active filter;

27. The pickup device of claim 26, wherein the permanent magnet, the printed coil, and the filter are integrated components.